We’ve all seen those dads in Disney who wear the funny shirts that say things like, “Most Expensive Day Ever.” Or maybe a simple #BROKE will suffice.

It’s funny because it’s TRUE! Because Disney World trips are so EXPENSIVE! HOWEVER, there are some things in Disney World that — shockingly enough — won’t break the bank to experience.

Hotels? Pricey. Park tickets? Pricey. Drinking Around the World? Don’t even get us STARTED.

But Disney World surprises us every now and then with some prices that make us go, “Hey! That’s not half bad!” (Or maybe we’ve experienced sticker-shock so frequently that even normal-priced things seem like a great deal? Dunno. Moving on… .)

Boat Rentals

Disney’s Friendship and Ferry boats can only satisfy your nautical desires for so long. Time to sail Disney’s waters on your own!

Okay, actually — gonna burst your bubble here real quick — the motorized boats you can rent at the different marinas scattered throughout the Disney World resorts are temporarily unavailable. Boo! But the keyword here is “temporarily” — meaning they should be up-and-running again in the future!

There are three different types of motorized boats you can (hopefully will soon be able to) rent are a Sea Raycer by Sea Ray® which seats two guests for $32 per half hour, Boston Whaler® Montauk which seats up to 6 guests for $45 per half-hour,  and Sun Tracker® Pontoon boats which seats up to 10 guests for $45 per half-hour. Not too shabby for being able to cruise around Disney’s lakes and lagoons on your own accord!

Do you know what’s still available to rent RIGHT NOW? Kayaks and canoes, over at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort and Campgrounds!

If you make your way over to The Bike Barn at the Meadow Recreation Area in Fort Wilderness (during the operating hours of 9AM-5PM), you can rent a canoe or kayak for $13 per hour. Fun stuff, right?! This is a first-come/first-serve basis, though — so if this is something you *really* want to do during your Disney World vacay, make sure you head to the recreation area earlier in the day for a better chance at grabbing a rental.

Learn more about Fort Wilderness offerings HERE!

Bike Rentals

For the land-lubbers out there who would prefer your family time on land rather than water, consider renting bikes or surrey bikes! Both adult bikes and children’s bikes — some with training wheels — are available on a first-come, first-serve basis. If you need them, helmets and child seats are complimentary with all bike rentals.

Disney offers bike rentals for $20 at eight resort locations: Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, Disney’s Old Key West Resort, Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – French Quarter (scheduled to reopen on October 28, 2021), Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – Riverside (scheduled to reopen on October 14, 2021), Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa, Disney’s Wilderness Lodge (currently unavailable during construction in the surrounding area), The Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort, The Campsites at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort. Check with your resort concierge for availability!

To really test that family-togetherness, look into a Surrey Bike rental. Disney offers a 2- or 4-person Surrey bike for $25 per person.

A Surrey bike rental makes for great family memories, photo opportunities, and exploring your resort in a whole new way. Just make sure that everyone is contributing to the pedaling! Surrey bike rentals are available at Disney’s Old Key West Resort, Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – French Quarter (scheduled to reopen on October 28, 2021), Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – Riverside (scheduled to reopen on October 14, 2021), Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa. BoardWalk Inn & Villas historically also offers bike rentals, but check with the resort concierge regarding availability, as it is currently not listed as an option.

Check Out 52 Fun Ways to Upgrade Your Disney Vacation

Mini Golfing

Even after years of being around, it still amazes us how many Disney World guests don’t realize there are two mini-golf courses available on property for anyone to play.

The first mini-golf course is Disney’s Fantasia Gardens Miniature Golf Course, based around the movie…*pause for dramatic effect*…FANTASIA! This course is located across from the Swan and Dolphin resorts.

And the second mini-golf course is Disney’s Winter Summerland Miniature Golf Course — celebrating the fun of snow and sand combined! This course is located right next to Disney’s Blizzard Beach water park.

Both courses are 18-hole mini-golf adventures of fun at the reasonable price of $14 per Adult, $12 per Child (Ages 3–9). Walk-ups are welcome (though you may have to wait for a bit), but you can also make reservations for the next day and beyond in advance by calling (407) WDW-PLAY.

Learn about Disney’s NEW junior golf classes HERE!

Haircuts at the Magic Kingdom

Rats! Did you forget to get that much-needed trim *before* vacation? Magic Kingdom has you covered! (Well, at some point once again it’ll have you covered. The Harmony Barber Shop is temporarily unavailable, as of now).

If you’ve ever wanted a haircut on Main Street, U.S.A. but were afraid of how costly it might be, worry no more! The Harmony Barber Shop has three different haircuts you can choose from Child’s Haircut (starting at $18), Adult Haircut (starting at $19), and My First Haircut (starting at $25).

That’s right — you can celebrate your little one’s momentous occasion right there on your Disney World vacation! The My First Haircut package comes with commemorative Mickey ears, a keepsake lock of hair, and an official milestone certificate. Considering the cost of the pair of Mickey ears alone, this is a GREAT deal!

The regular child’s and adult haircuts are pretty standard — cut, style, spray — so don’t think about getting *too* crazy. But, one thing’s for sure, the barbershop team is going to make you look spiffy and, dare we say, dapper by the end of your session! Plus, they can also give you a major style upgrade in the form of cool colored hair gels and “pixie dust” (AKA, chunky glitter!). Considering these are hair services performed IN Magic Kingdom, those prices are downright reasonable. We’ll keep you posted as soon as Harmony Barber Shop reopens!

Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique is still closed too…Or IS it? Click HERE to learn more!

EPCOT Scavenger Hunts

Looking for a new way to entertain your kiddos around EPCOT’s World Showcase? Then take your travel party to Disney World during an EPCOT festival for one of their unique scavenger hunts!

Here’s a list of different EPCOT scavenger hunts we’ve experienced:

*Festival of the Arts: Figment’s Brush With the Masters
*Flower and Garden: Spike’s Pollen-Nation Exploration
*Food and Wine: Remy’s Ratatouille Hide & Squeak
*Festival of the Holidays: Olaf’s Holiday Tradition Expedition

Each one cost us around $6.99-$7.99 and included a sticker map gamecard and a prize (after you finish the scavenger hunt and redeem it back at Disney Traders, MouseGear, World Traveler, or any of th redemption locations)!

The games are all very much in the same vain — locate the items/characters in each of the showcase pavilions — but the prizes vary. For Olaf’s scavenger hunt, we learned about holidays traditions and received a cute Frozen-inspired cup.

Remy’s scavenger hunt took us on an adventure to make Ratatouille! This gave us our choice of cute ice cream cups.

Finding Spike the Bee in gardens around EPCOT let us pick out our own plastic tumbler (we REALLY liked this one).

And after finding Figment hiding in paintings around World Showcase, the prize was a 3D puzzle.

This interactive experience helps keep kids engaged around the World Showcase AND doesn’t cost an arm-and-a-leg. Win-win! P. S. — adults can do it, too!

Learn more about EPCOT’s Food and Wine Festival booths HERE!

Behind the Seeds Tour

If you’re riding Living With The Land over in EPCOT’s Land pavilion, you need to keep your hands and feet inside the ride at all times to protect the plants growing in the greenhouses.

HOWEVER, if you schedule a Behind the Seeds Tour, you’ll get the opportunity to walk THROUGH the greenhouses — no boat ride required!

This experience is temporarily unavailable, but when it returns you’ll be able to once again experience an hour-long tour around the four Living With The Land greenhouses. During this tour, you can visit the fish during feeding time, see GINORMOUS fruits and veggies, and learn about how the cast members over in The Land pavilion use hydroponics to help their plan grow big and strong. This tour is a lot more reasonable than any of Disney World’s other tours; it’s priced at $29 per person!

This tour requires advanced reservations, which you can make (again, once it’s back up-and-running) by calling 407-WDW-TOUR.

Interested in taking more tours? Check out THIS tour that explores a location featured in Disney’s live-action film, Cruella!

Uniqlo Clothes

One of the most popular Disney souvenirs is a good ol’ graphic tee, commemorating your vacation and all the memories you made. But even t-shirts can be pricey in the World of Disney gift shop — or any of the other gift shops located around the resorts.

Lucky for you, there are cheaper alternatives over at Uniqlo in Disney Springs.

Uniqlo is a clothing store that originated in Japan and made its way into Disney Springs around July 2016. It features unique Disney tees and sweaters at a more reasonable price. For example, you see these shirts right here?

These are from Uniqlo’s Disney Stories Collection.

The graphic short-sleeved tees for adults were $14.90 each, and the sweatshirts were $29.90 each! That’s pretty stinkin’ awesome, considering the fact a Spirit Jersey from any of the Disney store gift shops is normally priced around $60+!

There’s even an adult Disney storybook shirt we found for $9.90 — in-stores and online!

But WAIT! That’s not ALL! You can also DESIGN YOUR OWN SHIRTS!

The UTme! shirt customization program allows you to take your own image (or one that UTme! has preloaded on their program), edit it the way you like, and PRESTO! Print it on your own graphic tee. These shirts cost a whopping $24.90 for adults and $19.90 for kids. Not too shabby! How cool is that?!

What galactic Disney shirts are we DESPERATELY wanting today? Find out HERE!

Silhouette Portraits

This might be our favorite affordable souvenir on Disney World property; if you blink, you might miss it.

The Silhouette Carts can be found in Magic Kingdom over in Liberty Square (near Sleepy Hollow Refreshments) and in the middle of Main Street, U.S.A. You can also find them in EPCOT’s France pavilion and Disney Springs (near the Ghiradelli Soda Fountain and Chocolate Shop).

Silhouette souvenirs at the Disney parks have been around ever since Disneyland opened back in 1955. Though they’re not as prevalent in the parks as they once were, Disney still employs a talented group of cast members ready to commemorate your Disney vacation with their artistically hand-crafted silhouette portraits of you and/or your family.

Ready to have your mind blown? These silhouettes only cost $10 per person AND you 2 copies of each silhouette! Even adding a frame for $9.95 is a steal of a deal! These are HAND CUT. It’s pretty bonkers to watch — the artist looks at your profile and starts cutting! No tracing, no guide, just SWEET SKILLZ.

Finally, as a bonus tip — don’t forget to snag a FREE Disney souvenir, yep those celebration buttons! Stop by a Disney hotel front desk, Guest Services in the Parks, or most gift shop checkouts and check-in podiums at restaurants to collect a button to show off what you’re celebrating!

Alright, we understand — these are all still technically ADDED expenses to your already-pricey Disney World vacation. BUT, if you have some wiggle room in your budget, these may be some solid options you want to consider adding for a bit of extra magic to your trip!

Looking for more unique Disney World souvenirs? Click HERE to keep exploring!

Learn more about some of our tips for saving money and finding unexpected deals at Disney!

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What’s the most affordable souvenir you’ve ever purchased at Disney World? Let us know in the comments below!

The post 7 Things at Disney World That Cost LESS Than You Think first appeared on the disney food blog.